Talking Chop

Yeah, I slept in this morning.

gondeee - December 23, 2009 reply

Nice. I can respect that.

Gawd, I wish I could have. Got in the office 2 hours early in the hopes of completing my work and leaving early!

i hear there's a big holiday in 2 days

I’m gonna go to the mall, like….now to go start and finish my Christmas shopping.

same here…started at 11 finished at 1…and somehow people get stressed out over this?

bpk228480 - December 23, 2009 reply

Bum.

Depending on the $ I love the signing. Who’s next? What’s Derosa asking for these days?

f'ing this

we need to sign DeRosa. All the reports are his demands are going down on his new contract. He could man RF until June so Heyward can get some more ABs in AAA. Then, he can fill in for Chipper and Glaus when they need a day off and can fill in for JHey when it’s a tough lefty.

Hmmm..

Isn’t that Omar Infante’s role?

Except

Infante isn’t very good.

jpx7 - December 23, 2009 reply

Yeah, what a scrub.

2 WAR since he got here over a whopping 550 PAs. Nobody’d want that for $2 mil.

Down to?

$$

Is the key.

Although after the Vasquez trade, Sori/Gonzalez decisions, Wagner/Saito signings, and now this, it seems more and more to me like Wren is looking to 2011.

THIS...

we still got a little money available, and a lot of versatility on the roster. We can go for one more veteran bat to help ease the injury risk of Glaus, Chipper, and others, or perhaps make a trade. Wren has a nice set up where we can stand pat, do some minor tinkering, or shake things up with a big move.

I think Wren is going to try to find a bargain starting corner OF/backup 1B. Nady, Hinske, Thames, Dye (maybe, if that one career game at 1B counts). If the money is right. Probably ends up being a late signing though, like GA was last year.

Dye said he was willing to move to first if it got him a job.

apparently

it hasnt worked yet. kinda feel for him

you know who would be a good match for him? The Giants/Mets

It's early yet...plenty of talent on the market.

Holy cow

that poll has 2700+ votes. Is Talking Chop that popular and busy?

And I like the signing. And as long as the $$ amount isnt too much, it’s a great low risk/high reward signing.

Chief Noc-A-Homa - December 23, 2009 reply

Losing the Jav-ster still hurts.

Sure does.

word

nope.

not when you still have hudson, hanson, jj, lowe and kk.

C Shint - December 23, 2009 reply

I don’t know if i like all “pitch to contact” pictures were have.. It was nice to have Vaz wiffing the world.

Hanson, JJ, and Hudson are “pitch to contact” guys?

Hanson isn't

hudson and JJ arent exactly 200 strike out guys, but i wouldnt put them in the KK category of “pitch to contact” guys

Didn’t JJ a few years ago say he is a "pitch to contact’ pitcher? I think he admitted that himself…

Yup

Medlen

And giving up the untimely homerun

too often. He has a history of doing that. Plus being nowhere near as good with men on base as with the bases empty.

Perrinbar - December 23, 2009 reply

Yes

We had almost 25,000 hits yesterday, the largest day ever for TC. Nothing like a trade with the Yankees to pull in the hits.

gondeee - December 23, 2009 reply

So...

You are pulling in the big bucks now and can sleep in, huh? ;-)

sddbaker - December 23, 2009 reply

haha

Not necessarily.

You don’t have to be a member to vote, so people can just drop in on that one article that was linked all over SBN.

Talking Chop

Where men (and women) go to put off Christmas shopping

2700 people and they’re almost all illiterate! I ain’t sold but one damn book off this place.

cbwilk - December 23, 2009 reply

Maybe....

that’s because they aren’t illiterate….

;-)

You know I’m just kidding…..

sddbaker - December 28, 2009 reply

me likey.

michaelcooksey - December 23, 2009 reply

Like it as well. Let’s hope everybody can stay healthy next year, if so we might have some power.

jraypritch - December 23, 2009 via mobile reply

I approve

I mentioned this the other day in a fanpost. I defn approve of this. Glaus made $12.1 million last year. I’m guessing he gets $2-3 plus incentives. I agree that we should still sign DeRosa. He could do everything we need and would be a good insurance policy for Glaus and Chipper.

Wow, $2 or $3 mil base?

That’s barely more than the hail mary contract we gave to Glavine last year.

Glaus Terms

Reported by DOB to be $2m plus incentives. I give that a “wow, great job, Frank.”

Meanwhile: The San Francisco Giants have offered Mark DeRosa a two-year deal worth $12MM, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter). Go get ’im, Frank! 2x$6 in Atlanta spends an awful lot further than 2x$6 in San Francisco.

carpengui - December 23, 2009 reply

I think the proper term is, “Fuckin’ A”

Hell yes.

That’s pretty insane.

So our lineup will look like this

Mclouth
Prado
Chip
McCann
Esco
Glaus
Diaz
Heyward

?

Glaus behind Heap and Esco?

I think glaus is our clean up guy

As do I, which is why I question his rationale. He fits in perfectly between Chipper and Heap.

Yup

the lineup didn’t look like the hitting order to me. Cause Heyward would not be at the bottom.

He would to start off.

I don’t think Heyward would ever hit 8th, even when he gets called up. There’s zero protection there, if anything he’ll hit 7th

FineHamAbounds - December 23, 2009 reply

Bobby always starts rookies at 8th

not andruw jones...

and as i recall not even Jeff Francouer, though with a cleanup hitter in place there isn’t as much pressure on Heyward now to put up huge numbers or really even make the team out of spring training (i hope he does) but i wouldn’t be surprised if we see Diaz hitting 8th to protect Heyward if he starts

Not Logan

Hell, not even Blanco...

Scott Thorman also got to hit 7th when he was starting, and Diaz got to hit 6th and 7th more than 8th when he first got here, etc., etc.

Kelly Johnson too, he debuted hitting cleanup if i recall correctley

Freemans - December 23, 2009 reply

wow

either we had a lot of faith in him or we had a terrible lineup

3rd, with Chipper hitting cleanup.

I hope you guys are right, but idk if Bobby will bat McCann behind a guy that got 150 ABs last year.

The amount of ABs he got last year is meaningless, as he obviously wasn’t healthy last season. If he’s healthy he should hit cleanup.

Right on.

Yeah, i hear you.

I hope we see him hitting clean up.

Imagine that 2008 production coming from a RH bat between Chipper and McCann? Mmm…very nice. I should probably stop getting so excited before I jinx this whole deal.

are you talking about Chipper? lol

I would guess...

…Bobby will flip-flop them depending on whether there is a lefty or righty pitching.

My guess would be

McLouth
Prado
Chipper
Glaus
McCann
Escobar
Diaz
Heyward

I think it's going to be..

McLouth
Prado
Chipper
Glaus
McCann
Escobar
Diaz
Cabrera

After June…
McLouth
Escobar
Chipper
Glaus
McCann
Heyward
Diaz
Prado

Lol. I was like who Cabrera until I remembered Melky

But I really don’t want him starting over Diaz

he shouldn’t. Diaz has proven himself enough to deserve an opening day spot. Melky is a great 4th outfielder. Underwhelming bat, decent average, but above average defense and arm for every outfield position

yeah

and i doubt escobar moves moves to the top of the order

...except he hasn't.

300 PA samples do not an everyday starter make.

Braves did not acquire Cabrera to be at the beginning of the year to be on the bench. He is gonna make what $2-3 million somethin like that, if we wanted to pay somebody that much we would have just kept Church or brought back Blanco for cheap as a 4th OF. Bottom line is IF Cabrera is not traded he will be our Starting OF at least for a few months. Now if Heyward is killin it in AAA then all bets are off. I see it as Diaz in LF, Cabrera in RF, and McLouth in CF. Of course Cabrera could still get dealt who knows but if he is on the team on opening day its not gonna be on the bench unless he is hurt.

I know Melky is on the roster now, but...

I would love to see him flipped for a prospect or two so that Frank could sign DeRosa. Melky could surprise me, but I’ve always liked MD… mostly when he played for other teams :[

carpengui - December 23, 2009 reply

I disagree.

I think we did get him to be a fourth OF. He is a good fourth OF, because he can play all three positions and is a switch hitter. The $2-3 million is about the going rate for that type of guy. He makes more sense for that money than Church, because Church doesn’t play center and would have made over three million.

Remember, that headline player we got in the deal was Vizcaino, not Melky.

Yeah we don’t see Melky as the centerpiece of the deal. He might even be third behind Dunn.

Church certainly plays center.

He did for us last year. I don’t disagree that Cabrera is the better choice as the cheaper player with more upside, but he can play CF.

ya man i realize that Vizcaino is of course the headline player. So Church doesn’t play Center? Really? Hmmm… coulda sworn i seen him play CF before…

yea he does

he did it a bit last year and looked better than nate

Although UZR disagrees.

but when he did play CF about every person on here was saying the same thing.

Haven't we decided that Escobar in an early-lineup spot doesn't work?

What doesn’t work about it?

Yeah, he was awesome in his 40 games in the 6 spot, but he’s still got an OBP over .360 for his career when batting 1 or 2.

Kobe:The Legend - December 23, 2009 reply

i agree keep escobar in the 6th spot like he was batting after the all star game last season

He is a good #2 hitter and seemed to struggle as a #1 hitter. Fine fine 2 hole hitter though. But i think Prado fits in better at the 2 hole and Esco at the 6 hole.

Escobar's OPS leading off a game:

1.043

He does hit better 5th or 6th, but his OBP at the top of the lineup is awesome.

Love this signing, called it before the season ended, glad to see people are on the bandwagon now too

There you have it...

Looks like we’ve got our opening day roster set, barring injury. I like it. Definitely set for a WC run, if not the division

still would like to see DeRosa and a guy like Erik Hinske added to the roster, we’ve got money and neither is looking for a long term deal (that is if the reports about DeRosa willing to accept a 2yr deal are true) and they make our bench very good. Also allows us to keep Heyward in AAA without settling for mediocrity for a few months

I agree

Derosa and Infante coming off the bench as super-utility players would be awesome. good bats too. I’m sure more AAA time could only benefit heyward, but I think wren has already tapped him to start opening day. He’d never admit it this early, but I think he fully expects him to be on the field opening day

I wouldn’t be surprised if he wants Heyward to start Opening Day but spending ~5M now to get a guy that can more than hold his own in RF to start the season makes more sense because I’d rather have 3.5 years of pre arb for Heyward than 3 as I’m sure the braves would as well

If you're replacing that .5 with an inferior hitter that costs you a playoff berth...

Yeah, it’s worth it.

You really can’t expect Heyward to mash right out of the gate so if we got a Mark DeRosa or comparable I’d say that would not represent an inferior hitter. and the whole point of spending ~5M on a guy is so you get someone who can perform above what is expected of Heyward to start the 10 season

Mark DeRosa would cost way too much...

…to just start him for two months and move him to a utility role. He has already been offered 2 years/$12 million. Remember that DeRosa and Melky had identical OPS+ numbers last year—-99. DeRosa has only significantly been over 100 OPS+ once. So, when you say if we got DeRosa or a comparable hitter, know that we already have gotten a comparable hitter.

True, but DeRo was hampered by injuries last season and the year before he posted a 117 OPS+. Cabrera’s never been over 100.

Just trying to play devil’s advocate.

melky does not equal derosa going forward unless you have a lot of confidence in cabrera. as smoltz’s beard said injuries, wrist (as we should know from schafer), really hurt his offensive performance as the season wore on

thats why I don’t mind if we dont signr another outfielder. However some insurance would be great

tabbed*

Reply button, friend.

gotchya :)

+1

Maybe another catcher

So Ross can pinch hit this year.

You'd rather carry three?

Ugh. Why waste two spots on the bench if we’re just gonna play Mac 140 games a year anyway?

Ross is our best pinch hitter, though. It probably won’t be as annoying this year since Norton won’t be around.

wonder

if we will look at some DH’s for bench roles. Cust, Thome, etc

yea

we all know how bobby is about players hitting over .300 and with OPS 1.000 and up

they bat 7th

FineHamAbounds - December 23, 2009 reply

No complaints here.

Glaus had shoulder surgery last year, so sticking him at 1B should limit the stress from throwing. I don’t think he’s as big an “injury risk” as a lot of people say, just because he missed most of a season. Pitchers come back from TJ surgery after missing a year all the time, and put a lot more stress on their elbows than Glaus will on his shoulder. As long as the guy can hold a glove and swing a bat, there’s monster potential here.

WHOO

finally some good news

Erihury - December 23, 2009 reply

HELL YEAH !!!

TROY FU^%$NG GLAUS !!!! I LOVE IT !!!!

ggotch - December 23, 2009 reply

I'm calling it...

He’s taking Cole Hamels deep in his first game against him…

?????

Why would any mother name their son MELKY ?

ggotch - December 23, 2009 reply

HAHA. THIS

or Jhonny

always wondered about that one

That's actually a somewhat common name in the dominican republic

It’s probably short for Melchizidek or Melquides

Question: Who's our opening day starter?

for $15 mil? Count on D-Lo toein’ the rubber on opening day again

He’s no where near being an ace, he’s probably our #3 or #4 starter

Hudson

Maybe, but he’s the top paid pitcher on the team, and making him the opening day starter will help smooth over any hurt feelings from shopping him around for a trade.

maybe I’m just being optimistic, but I expect a big bounce-back year from Lowe. Still definitely not an ace, but he should make us all feel better about him being on the team next year

This

yep

I actually expect him getting the 2nd start of the season, it would be a great PR move since Lowe seemed bent out of shape about the trade rumors and I’d think that the Braves would try to restore some of his confidence, starting 2 young pitchers ahead of him wouldn’t do so.

He might even be the Opening Day starter for this reason.

I think JJ has earned the opening day start unless he is hurt. Lwe would be fine starting second though.

Not a vet.

Bobby won’t do it.

maybe not but JJ has earned it though.

huddy

JJ

Lowe or Hudson

Jareth Cutestory - December 23, 2009 reply

I guess I like it

but sentimentally, I’ll miss Adam LaRoche.

as does Chipper

God, the comments on MLBTR are unbelievable stupid…never ceases to amaze me.

+1

I gave up on looking at those a long time ago. Makes my head hurt.

VegasAces - December 23, 2009 reply

the braves4ever character was dumb enough to say GA>Melky

Good risk/reward move, as long as the money is right.

$2m + incentives sounds right...

sounds great to me considering I wouldn’t have expected any less than Garrett Atkins got from Baltimore ($4.5m).

I think the incentives will be big...

…and put him above Atkins if he reaches them all. Which is fine with me—-he’s a good hitter with a big injury risk. Putting the money in playing time incentives seems fair.

im not saying he should be an ace. In reality he probably is our fourth best starter, but we signed him to be our “ace,” so I assume we’ll c him there again. Huddy has the best chance to win the job over Lowe, I could see either one on opening day

woops

meant to reply to the the other post

Glaus

Depending on the money and his health, i like this move. I say the money because I still feel we should have enough left to get Garko/Gomes and a solid OF. I’m not sure on Melky yet. I still can’t figure out the Melky addition, with Heyward, Schafer and Milligan/CoJo coming up. I think we would have been better off signing a guy and getting mroe prospects in the deal.

I don’t think we’ll be seeing another outfield this offseason. No one big at least. Schafer seems like prime trade bait to me. Mclouth could be traded down the road too if the Braves feel that Schafer can compete at the ML level

outfielder*

melky is more than serviceable as a fourth outfielder. Thats why I don’t understand why so many people thought we were done searching for a bat when we got Melky. He was never involved in the trade to be our answer in the outfield

Agree. I hope Wren’s comments yesterday (documented here by Gondeee) made people realize that.

VegasAces - December 23, 2009 reply

Yeah, but still a fourth outfielder. We need a starting RF. That should be the top priority. For example, our lineup would be set right now if Swisher can in that deal.

We only need at most...

…two months of a starting right fielder. A fourth OF can do that and does for injuries.

I don’t know why everyone thinks Swisher was available. The first time it was mentioned was by David O’Brien on a blog. I’d love to have Swisher any day but I don’t think we ever had a chance to have him. Honestly, why would the Yankees trade him?

i wish we had been able to get him as well. Im not a Yankee’s fan but i really think they need a real Right Fielder. Swisher is not a real right fielder. AT ALL

3 in a row FTW!

So now that you’ve learned the reply button, use my restraint, buddy! ;-)

Fail

my = some

Garko would be a great signing.

What happens to Schafer?

He’ll never be brought up to sit on the bench. But we can’t just hand him the job over Diaz, who was fawesome last year. If Heyward is up, what happens if Schafer rips it up in AAA?

trade bait

he’s one of our most attractive trade pieces we have in the organization. Especially because we don’t have a lot of outstanding talent with our position players in the minors (except for Heyward, of course)

Yeah, they love Schafer. I don’t want to see him go nor do i think he will.

Imagine the outfield...

exactly what the braves ultimately want, McLouth in left, Schafer in center, Heyward in right and Diaz ultimate pinch hitter. Nothing would get down in that outfield.

What about Melky?

expendable...

pure and simple though he is a better defender than Diaz he could be moved to free up cash.

Though keep in mind this would really only become an issue if everything pans out in terms of both Schafer and Heyward’s development.

I think Schafer is going to force the CF issue very soon. If so, I imagine Diaz as the odd man out (since Cabrera is younger than Diaz, although he costs more).

I hope the Braves give Heyward another few months in AAA, if only to delay his arb clock. By August, our OF could easily be McLouth, Schafer, Heyward, with Cabrera as the 4th and Diaz dealt at the deadline.

hmm

I dont think youth will have anything to do with these two because neither are battling for a position as a teams long-term starter i think it’ll be based strictly on performance.

and I agree Heyward should probably follow a similar path that Hanson did but i dont think that necessarily means we trade Diaz as he’d be a very productive pinch-hitter

By youth I was talking about more upside for Melky, if that doubles power develops. Diaz at 31 is pretty much a known commodity, no more growth there and a decline phase probably coming in a few years.

Don’t disagree that Diaz would be a great guy to keep on the bench. Maybe they’d deal Melky @ $3M, but Diaz at $1M probably would have more value on the open market.

That was my thought as well. But at age 31, I don’t know that Diaz is the long-term answer to be honest.

I don’t think he is either, but I think the Braves are especially wary of bringing up Schafer too soon again. We mite not see him in the majors at all this year. Diaz will do in left for now. But I agree the Braves would love an outfield of Heyward, Schafer, and Mclouth

We didn’t really bring him up to soon. He just had a broken wrist

If he's tearing up AAA

I’d let him do that for at least a few months, to help get his confidence up. And though I hope we won’t deal with injuries, when they inevitably do happen, he’ll be the fil-in for the Braves.

And if he’s putting up numbers in AAA like Heyward did in AA, that’s when we start shopping our OFers for a trade. McLouth could end up bringing something valuable back as he’s still signed for several years at an affordable rate. We start looking for IF prospects (because the system really lacks good IF prospects).

Bronn - December 23, 2009 reply

McLouth vs. Shafer

McLouth gets a fat raise next season, if i’m not mistaken. I still like Shafer

I could see us trading either one. I’m just a little wary of Schafer myself. I don’t think we can just chalk his troubles up to a bad wrist. He seemed over matched while he was up. I’m not saying he can’t turn it around, but I could definitely see him being traded

I mean it was broken. There’s a reason he played really well and then couldn’t hit an inside fastball. Sure he would’ve eventually struggled, but you can’t not chalk it up to a bad wrist.

No it wasn't.

He had a bone bruise and strained some ligaments.

We’ve been over this. It was broken.

cbwilk - December 23, 2009 reply

Regardless of what it was, I still want to see him tear up AAA first...

…because his hot streak at the start of the year really lasted only barely more than a week and because I worry about a player who will play with a broken wrist for two months, suck in the interim, and not tell the right people the right information so they can find the problem. And honestly, I hope the problem was Schafer not telling the right people—-if he did and we didn’t catch it, then I worry about the medical staff for all of our players.

I've yet to see it.

4.5 million next year

6.5 million in 2011. He does have a large option in 2012, 10.65 million, with a 1.25 million buy out, so that’s the point where it doesn’t become such a great deal.

Still worth a decent haul with that contract if we were trade him midseason this year. Assuming his bat picks up just a tad, he could be a very valuable piece for a competitive team with needs in the OF, as he can play all three positions.

Bronn - December 23, 2009 reply

exactly..

Shafer is cheaper for longer… That makes McLouth more than tradeable.

I like McLouth a lot, though, so unless Schafer gives an indication he’s ready to be our CF of the future, I wouldn’t trade McL unless the return were too good to pass up.

justincredubil02 - December 23, 2009 reply

Call me crazy, but I’ll take Schafer over Shafer any day.

He’ll platoon with Diaz.

If Schafer is ripping it up

they prob wil trade McLouth.

MLBTR

says it for $2M plus incentives. Soleeed.

Mark Lempke - December 23, 2009 reply

That’s deal then and leaves us PLENTY.

Plenty for what end, though

All the major needs are filled. Guess it’s time to start working on an extension for Yunel.

Bronn - December 23, 2009 reply

Wren can be very patient and try to get very creative now. We have a pretty much set roster, plus lots of depth at both the major and minor league levels, and available cash on hand to spend.

I think he should look for bargain basement deals on the late FA market, but more importantly maintain maximum flexibility and aggressively explore any trade opportunities that arise with the goal being to score a younger, controllable long-term solution for 3B, LF or CF.

fandave - December 23, 2009 reply

trades?...

or keep the money to be used for extensions, draft picks/internation signings, a mid year trade, or just put it in the bank and add it to next year.

Well, you still have to budget for the incentives, but that’s definitely a good base for us.

Agreed. Forgive me for my ignorance but are the incentives in any way factored into the salary cap number?

Mark Lempke - December 23, 2009 reply

I mean not salary cap...

the projected Braves payroll for this year (90M) supposedly. Sorry, I’m stuck in Colts mode.

Mark Lempke - December 23, 2009 reply

It has to be factored in to the budget of the money we have left to spend this season.

It probably won’t show up on, say, an opening day payroll chart, or something like that.

Wow

Awesome. I’m very impressed.

Love it.

I like Glaus and now that I’ve seen the money, I LOVE this signing. Well done Frank.

MTSU11 - December 23, 2009 reply

Jay-Hey will start in AAA following the Tommy Hanson model the Bravos set last year…get use to that.

We have our infield-do-it-all in infante but it seems we’re missing that OF/1B utility guy. DeRoe would be that guy, but I think he would start over Melky.

Here’s by opening day line up:

1. Natedawg
2. DeRoe
3. Chipper
4. Glaus
5. Heap
6. Yunel
7. Diaz
8. Prado
9. D. Lowe

Does this team with or without DeRoe pass the Phills for the division?

Chesterhighwater - December 23, 2009 via mobile reply

I can’t commit a player to our roster without, you know….him actually being on the roster. There are other suitors for Derosa, namely the Yankees that could screw us out of getting him. I’d love to see us pick him up, but I don’t think it’s any better then a 50/50 shot. But if we have the money free’d up, we should use it to better the team this yr. not hold on to it

I think we can compete for the division without derosa. We did just fine against the phils last year even when we had dead weight like KJ and Francouer holding us back. If we can be productive throughout our lineup, even without a ton of power, we can beat em. Halladay or not

the more I think about it....

…the more I think there’s a better chance of seeing X Nady signed this offseason before Derosa…I’d take that too

more of a bargain basement, low risk-high upside signing. What is Derosa’s asking price down to?

I agree with Nady being the better bet.

DeRosa is a nice bat for second base, but if he is primarily in the OF or at 1B, he just isn’t that good a hitter. Remember that his OPS+ was the same as Melky last year. His versatility makes him more expensive, too. Per MLBTR, DeRosa already has a 2 yr./$12 million offer. I would not want him at that price.

Sid Bream's Moustache - December 23, 2009 reply

Didn't the Hanson model kind of backfire?

T-Guns was ready and we ran out a shitty 5th for 3 months instead.

Screw it, let’s put the Heyward out there in april after he tears up Spring Training (which is a foregone conclusion)

It's a gamble..

See: the Jordan Schafer model

Schafer got hurt…

i'd say that too if i sucked lol

justincredubil02 - December 23, 2009 reply

Would you have surgery just to make it look more legit?

Depends on how badly I wanted to get out of work, and how good my insurance coverage was….lol

Bronn - December 24, 2009 reply

I told my wife yesterday that I want to have another operation just for the anethsesia.

justincredubil02 - December 24, 2009 reply

We’ll never really know either way. One could just as easily argue that the model worked to perfection because that extra time at the AAA level helped make Hanson all that he was when he came up. We don’t know how he would have pitched coming out of the gate if he’d started the season in the majors.

Sir Stealth - December 23, 2009 reply

How do we know hie was ready?

Also, we should have had Glavine instead of the shitty 5th, but he got hurt.

FineHamAbounds - December 23, 2009 reply

$2MM plus incentives?

How can you not like that? If he hits even 20 HR, it’s a steal.

Ok…

1. Natedawg
2. Prado
3. Chipper
4. Glaus
5. Heap
6. Yunel
7. Diaz
8. Melky
9. D. Lowe

Is that enough to pass the phillies? I don’t know if it is.

Chesterhighwater - December 23, 2009 via mobile reply

whos our fourth outfielder if Melky is starting?

Probably Brandon Jones.

MatM - December 23, 2009 reply

Melky only starts until June

Our Savior is to be called up.. Jason Heyward!

Holty_Panthers_Fan - December 23, 2009 reply

My Christmas just got merrier :)

Glaus for 2MM/ incentives is a good present for this Braves fan!

HEYJUDE - December 23, 2009 reply

Here comes Nady

I would look for Nady to be added to this team as soon as January 1st arrives; he just needs to prove that his elbow is healthy enough to play in OF and throw; plus he would be a great insurance policy to Glaus.

Go Braves.

I agree on Nady, but I wonder...

…if he will be able to throw by January or even April. His TJ surgery was in June or July, IIRC. Even then, he might be cheaper and be CI insurance until he can play the OF.

He's supposed to be ready to go by the start of ST as of the last update.

Kobe:The Legend - December 23, 2009 reply

Here is my lineup...

1. Nate Mclouth-CF
2. Martin Prado-2B
3. Chipper Jones-3B
4. Troy Glaus-1B
5. Brian McCann-C
6. Yunel Escobar-SS
7. Mark Derosa-RF
8. Matt Diaz-LF
9. Derek Lowe-P

Rotation-
1. Derek Lowe
2. Jair Jurrjens
3. Tommy Hanson
4. Tim Hudson
5. Kenshin Kawakami

Bench-
Brandon Jones
Mitch Jones
Omar Infante
Melky Cabrera
Eric Hinske

You left Ross off the bench, and I don’t even think we need Eric Hinske. Our bench is more than strong already. We already seem to be signing Xavier Nady anyways. I think Mitch Jones finds his nitch with us as a pinch hitter or 1st basemen if (when) Troy Glaus gets injured.

You’d really take Mitch Jones over Hinske? It’s not like it’d be a money issue, Hinske is solid

We would sign either...

..Hinske, DeRosa, or Nady. I don’t see us signing two of them. That’s a bit overkill. There just aren’t that many spots on the roster; remember Ross is one of them and we’ll probably carry 12 pitchers.

Line up!

This line up looks the best. I wish we could get Derosa. If so I like our chances for Div. Champ. Derosa can play third or first. And is a fan Fav. at least he’s one of my Fav.

Grey Rider - December 23, 2009 reply

You know, you’re probably an OK guy, but you may want to re-think that profile pic…

Your wrong I’m a great guy! Don’t lie cheat or steal. And I did think about it for a sec. And as far as getting into this whole thing \ stuff. Your written words not mine.My comment was about the Braves lineup. Remember you felt like saying something. I’m going to be Grey Rider. And you can be Yakker. And my credibility is worth a lot more than your $0.02. Go Braves

Grey Rider - December 25, 2009 reply

I've got your back, man.

Do what you do. Not hurting anybody else.

Actually, and I really do not want to get into a whole thing about this, that profile pic could hurt a lot of people by bringing up stuff that’s better left alone.

I agree the guy should do whatever he wants. It’s a free country. It just seems to me that on a place like this, why do something that’s going to cause others pain or cause people to question your credibility? Just my $0.02, but I felt like I needed to say something.

Again, Grey Rider should do whatever he wants. I just thought he might want to re-think it and make sure he really wants the confederate flag to be the first impression he presents to the TC world.

/steps off soapbox.

Yakker - December 24, 2009 reply

You know I don’t want to get into a political thing either, but I totally agree.

cbwilk - December 24, 2009 reply

How is the signing possible?

Frank Wren sucks…REMEMBER??

mvandonsel - December 23, 2009 reply

that was ancient history … yesterday.

fandave - December 23, 2009 reply

Awesome

I was pretty pissed at him yesterday…but all has been forgotten. For now.

justincredubil02 - December 23, 2009 reply

HAHAHA! Nice.

Actually over on Mark Bradley’s page about this trade, the commenters and Bradley were still hating on him. For signing Glaus. Since his career BA is .255 and the last time he hit 40+ HR was 2002. Despite hitting 37 and 38. It’s so idiotic

acie4mvp - December 24, 2009 reply

Glaus

yeah, but he has a good OBP, just can’t run anymore. They ought to pick up Hinske, he would be could back up at infield and outfield corners. Good team guy, like Gomes…both would be good additions. Rather add those two than Nady.

Blue or CONKZILLA - December 24, 2009 reply

Haha, classic.

Smoltz's Beard - December 24, 2009 reply

Me: How good was that report on Glaus’ health, exactly? Is he an option as Chipper insurance?
DOB: Yes, he is. Played 3B for Cardinals some in September, made some dificult throws, etc. And is much stronger now than he was then.

—via Twitter

I have a feeling

that Frank Wren isnt done. I dont know that he is going to stop at Glaus. He will prob sign Nady as a back-up in case Glaus goes down.

If he doesnt our team still looks pretty solid. I would like to see some experimentation done with the remainder of the line up.

1. Diaz LF
2. Melky RF
3. Chip 3B
4. Glaus 1B
5. McCann C
6. Escobar SS
7. McLouth CF
8. Prado 2B

Against lefties i wouldn’t mind seein Diaz battin leadoff, but i would rather Prado bat second instead of Melky though.

hmm

i was thinking melky because of his patient approach would be good in the #2 hole. Could also work in the 8 spot

FineHamAbounds - December 24, 2009 reply

Melky doesn't have a "patient approach."

The guy doesn’t strike out OR walk much, and has a career .331 OBP.

He also sees 3.87 pitches/PA.

That’s above league-average, and he’s been trending upwards.

FineHamAbounds - December 24, 2009 reply

I don’t care if he sees 1, 3.87, or 10 pitches/PA if he can’t get on base at more than a .331 clip.

Well then I guess you should certainly hope for a repeat of his rookie year.

He showed he has the capacity to OBP .360.

FineHamAbounds - December 24, 2009 reply

I would LOVE that.

I want him to prove me wrong.

having a patient approach and getting on base are two different things

drumzalicious - December 24, 2009 reply

Thank you.

here's another thought

1. McLouth CF
2. Prado 2B
3. Chipper 3B
4. Glaus 1B
5. Jonny Gomes LF
6. McCann C
7. Escobar SS
8. Diaz RF

It was smart that you left the pitcher off that line-up...

…because the pitcher would be pissed that he couldn’t allow any flyballs to left field.

lol

Maddux would get around that.

;)

Nice.